On September 13, 2010, the Bureau of Enterprise Systems and Technology (BEST) received approval of its application for federal stimulus funding to expand state broadband access and network capacity.

The application, created and submitted in partnership with the Department of Public Safety (DPS) and the Connecticut Education Network (CEN), will enable the State to enhance network connections between schools and libraries to the high speed Connecticut Education Network (CEN) and improve public safety communications capability across the state.

More than 80 letters of support from schools, libraries and other institutions were received in support of this initiative. BEST thanks state leaders for their leadership and commitment, and agency partners, community institutions and other organizations for their support and hard work for this successful effort.

"This $93.9 million grant, with an additional $23.5 million in matching contributions, will allow the Connecticut Department of Information Technology to deploy over 5,500 miles of fiber network to upgrade and expand existing broadband infrastructure and improve the state’s public safety and educational services."

"As a result of this stimulus grant, the state can now expand that network to more than 500 additional public safety locations, advancing enhanced 9-1-1 capabilitiesand allowing for greater sharing of emergency information."

"This project will deliver 100 megabits per second fiber service to many community anchor institutions in Connecticut that currently lack this level of connectivity as well the redundancy necessary to ensure uninterrupted broadband access, including Connecticut’s K-12 school districts, colleges and universities, public libraries and public computing centers."